Montgomery County, TN – Andrew Kester has been selected as the County’s Director of Continuous Improvement. This position is new to the County and is responsible for designing and overseeing the activities of the County’s performance management program in support of Mayor Golden’s top priorities and departmental strategic initiatives. Kester will be responsible for developing the County’s performance management processes and providing guidance and assistance to County departments. 

Kester is a retired Army First Sergeant who has served as the Director of the Montgomery County Veterans Service Organization since 2019. Under his leadership, MCVSO earned national and state recognition for their service to Veterans. Kester has also served as a Leadership Studies Adjunct Professor at Western Kentucky University since 2015. He served as Radiologic Technology Instructor at Austin Peay State University and an Educational Coordinator and Applications Trainer at MinXray Inc. for five years after retiring from the Army in 2010.

Kester earned his Ed.D.(Organizational Leadership) from Western Kentucky University KY in 2017; his M.S. (Health Education) from Touro University, Cypress, CA, in 2008; a B.S. (Health Care Management) from National American University, Rapid City, SD, in 2006 and his A.A.S. (Medical Imaging) from Thomas Edison State College, Trenton, NJ in 2004. 

“The Continuous Improvement position is one that I feel strongly about. This position will help us align our personnel and budgetary resources in a way that serves the community even better. We know this has proved successful for the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System and look forward to great results for the County. Andrew’s education, expertise, and knowledge will help us achieve our priorities. His systematic, data-driven approach served our VSO well, and we look forward to him incorporating that approach on a larger scale,” said Mayor Golden.

“It is an honor to be selected for this position in service to Montgomery County, Mayor Golden, and our department heads in this new role. I am excited about the change, but it is also bittersweet because I love leading MCVSO. It is time for me to practice what I preach to my team. I tell them to grow and make the most of their experience and skills, and it’s time for me to do the same,” said Kester.

Kester has called Montgomery County home since 2008. He has been married to his wife Debra for 31 years. They have two children. Kyle a 1LT stationed at Fort Campbell and Jenna a sophomore at APSU.

Among the Director of Continuous Improvement’s key responsibilities are:

• Develop metrics and targets as defined by the Mayor and Department heads to establish priorities, goals, objectives and measures to track and evaluate performance. 
• Conducts and oversees organizational reviews to identify strengths and weaknesses and to evaluate operational effectiveness.
• Coordinates performance management sessions between the Mayor’s Office and departmental leadership using data-driven analysis to discuss performance, identify problems, diagnose causes and invest resources to solve issues affecting performance and achievement of the Mayor’s highest priorities as well as key organizational and departmental initiatives.
• Partners with Accounts and Budget staff to identify opportunities for organizational performance reviews of County operations with the greatest potential financial, strategic or operational impact.
• Conducts management performance analysis for departmental operations to improve work methods, set standards and increase the effectiveness of County operations.
• Develops and implements countywide performance management process, which focuses on monitoring and reporting activities.

For information about Montgomery County Government, visit mcgtn.org.

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Hello Montgomery County!

On July 1st, we begin our new fiscal year in County Government. It’s important to note that our 2023-2024 budget passed at June’s Formal County Commission meeting with no property tax increase. This was done while funding all critical public safety projects and with significant support for capital projects on our school buildings.  

Passing the Montgomery County budget is a lengthy process that takes planning from department heads, elected officials, and me - all advocating for the projects, equipment, and people necessary to meet the needs of our growing community. The budget committee members, represented by members of the full County Commission body, listened and questioned for weeks, and requested adjustments. This resulted in the presentation of a fiscally responsible budget to the full commission on June 12th.

The County’s approved budget reflects our commitment and investment in the future. It provides essential resources to improve the quality of life for our residents. It enhances our services, allows us to work on some much-needed projects, and provides a cost-of-living increase to retain employees.

Here are some key highlights of our 2023-24 budget:
1. Important Asks: We fulfilled critical requests in Public Safety for Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Emergency Management Agency (EMA), and the Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), providing them with the equipment and training resources needed to respond sufficiently to emergencies and take care of Montgomery County residents. Our Parks and Recreation Department also received funds to work on additional quality-of-life improvements in our unincorporated areas like Fredonia and Woodlawn.

2. Capital Projects: Our largest projects for this fiscal year are the construction of the public library in north Clarksville, the new and desperately needed Animal Care and Control Facility, a new Highway Department Facility, road projects in the industrial park, Sango, Guthrie and Palmyra, investments in replacement roofs for schools across the County, and improvements at the Public Safety Training Complex that will be used by emergency services personnel and the Sheriff’s Office.

3. New Employees: This year’s budget allows us to hire new employees to keep up with growth by adequately staffing our departments to best serve our community. Every high school, for example, is now budgeted for two School Resource Officers (SROs), and every middle and elementary school has one SRO. The only exception is Middle College because they have APSU Campus Police.

4. Cost of Living Increase for Employees: All County employees will receive a 3% cost-of-living increase on July 1, 2023. A 2% step increase for qualifying employees will also be applied to employee anniversary dates. We will continue to promote incremental increases for employees to keep us competitive in the job market and prevent us from falling behind. Taking care of our current employees will always be a priority.

5. New Human Capital Management (HCM) Program: We are investing in new HR software (HCM) to improve our training processes, reduce payroll processing time, and streamline hiring steps, making it easier to identify qualified candidates and shortening the amount of time between recruitment and hiring.

The passage of this year’s budget would not have been possible without the dedication, hard work, and commitment each employee brings to Montgomery County Government. Other than the department heads, elected officials, budget committee, and County Commission, I would especially like to thank our accounts and budget team for the many hours they worked during our three-month budget season. We will keep the community informed on budget initiatives and projects throughout the fiscal year through local media and our County’s social media outlets.

We are blessed with an outstanding team in Montgomery County Government, full of people who care about this community. If you have questions about the budget or any County initiatives, reach out any time. It is a pleasure and honor to serve as your Montgomery County Mayor.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Tenn. – Montgomery County Government offices are closed Tuesday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day.  County offices will be open for business on Monday, July 3 and reopen on Wednesday, July 5. 

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Montgomery County Government offices are closed Monday, June 19 in observance of the Juneteenth federal holiday. All County offices will reopen on Tuesday, June 20, during normal hours of operation.

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MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Tenn. – Pet adoption rates at Montgomery County Animal Care and Control (MCACC) as well as other shelters, increase when kids are out of school for the summer. As exciting as it can be to bring a cuddly new friend into the family, please consider the lifelong commitment it takes to care for a pet. Caring for an animal extends beyond providing food, water, and a home. It takes research and careful planning to find the right companion for your household and fulfill its needs throughout the pet's life.

Adopting is a commitment. It means pets should not be surrendered for minor reasons. Situations can arise beyond people's control, leaving them with no choice but to find another home for their pet(s). Pet owners who may need to surrender their pet(s) should try to exhaust all other options in rehoming, finding a rescue, or finding a temporary home before turning their pet into a shelter.

"The last few weeks have been an added challenge for us at the shelter. On average, we have six surrenders daily and are completely booked for the summer. It saddens us because these animals love their owners, who are often the only family they have ever known. They think they are coming back for them but they don’t," said MCACC Adoption Coordinator Samantha Crosby.

Montgomery County Animal Care and Control had 700 pet surrenders in 2022 and has received 311 pet surrenders to date this year. Reasons for pet surrenders include deployments, housing restrictions, animal behavior, financial responsibilities, no longer wanting the responsibility, and abrupt life changes. 

Shelter environments are challenging transitions for pets. The separation from the human(s) they know, the noise, strange smells, and unfamiliar dogs and cats take a toll on an animal’s psyche and behavior. Pets are often confused, trying to follow their human out the door. Pet surrenders also add stress to shelter officers and staff. Finding the time, resources, and energy to care for all animals can seem impossible.

“Frankly, we have been overwhelmed with surrenders. It is hard on the animals and hard on the staff. We want people to understand that adopting a pet is a lifetime commitment,” stated MCACC Director Dave Kaske.

To reduce pet owner surrenders in Montgomery County, MCACC wants to educate the community about pet ownership responsibility and offer resources to help people keep their pets.

Info on MCACC can be viewed at mcgtn.org/animal-control.

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